One day after Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Vaze became the investigating officer in Mukesh Ambani’s bomb-scare probe, his team at the Mumbai Police’s Criminal Intelligence Unit (CIU), on 27 February, visited his housing society and reportedly asked for all the CCTV footage available.
This incident allegedly occurred at Saket Cooperative Housing Society in Thane West near the Mumbai-Agra highway.
An anonymous official from the society told The Indian Express that the 4-member police team “initially made an oral request and were reluctant to put in a formal written request”.
“It was only after the society said that it would not hand over the footage without a written demand did they write a letter,” the official said, according to the newspaper.
The letter for the procurement of the DVR footage, accessed by The Quint and signed by API Riyaz Qazi, read, “Whereas for the purpose of investigation this office needs to check the CCTV installed in premises of your society and the adjoining area. Whereas CCTV footage of your premises of your society and the adjoining roads and areas are stored in the DVR. Whereas these DVR are needed to be taken in charge for the thorough investigation. Therefore, you are directed to produce those 02 DVR. (sic)”
Vaze and his team had also reportedly taken possession of the CCTV footage and a register from a shop in Thane. The false number plates attached to the two vehicles involved in the Antilia incident were allegedly made in that shop, The Indian Express reported.
Sources told The Quint that the CIU did not mention these “seizures” as evidence in the case’s papers.
The owner of the shop, Navin Talreja, spoke to The Indian Express and said, “On 25 February, Sachin Vaze and four other policemen came to my shop and told me that they were investigating the Ambani case and that the car registration number may have been made at my shop. The next day, four of the officers came and took the DVR of the CCTV footage and the register where I maintain records.”
According to an NIA officer, the DVR and register are cardinal pieces of evidence as they can reveal the identity of the ones that got the fake number plates made.
Searches Conducted at CIU Office
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday, 15 March also conducted searches at Vaze’s cabin in the Mumbai Crime Investigation Unit (CIU) office in the case at 10 pm.
The probe agency confiscated Vaze’s mobile phone, laptop, iPad and several documents from his cabin.
After taking over the probe, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested Vaze on Saturday night for his alleged role in the placement of the car with explosives outside Ambani’s house.
Vaze was suspended from service on Monday.
(With inputs from The Indian Express and NDTV)
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